PROMPT 12: IS BIAS INEVITABLE IN THE PRODUCTION OF KNOWLEDGE?

TOK Talk · Is Bias Inevitable In The Production Of Knowledge?

Today I’m joined for another session by Ms. Virginia Voigt, Psychology teacher and we discussed TOK Exhibition Prompt 12: Is Bias inevitable in the production of knowledge?

Since we’re human (and we're biased even when we try to be aware of our own biases), and knowledge is made by and for humans, the logical deduction here would be that yes, bias is inevitable. We don’t stop with this though, we unpack this question through the lens of Psychology, a field that strives to be as aware as possible and remove bias through stringent measures. 

Our conversation today reminds me very much of Thoreau’s quote I have on my refrigerator “It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see”. I’m left wondering that if bias is inevitable to some extent, is bias necessarily a bad thing? Or, if it is unavoidable, what can we do about this? Another topic we discuss is the bias of language, and the fact that we’re holding this conversation in English, and the problems that come along with this.

Kudos (my favorite granola bar as a kid) to Bernard for the music once again. Seriously, if I can find a kudos bar, it’s yours. Thank you.

Link from our discussion well worth the listen:
14 Biases (Master Class)